Press Freedom in Azerbaijan: ECtHR Delivers Judgment in the Case of Khadija Ismayilova
The European Court of Human Rights has delivered its judgment today in the case of award-winning investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova. The Court held that Azerbaijan had arbitrarily detained Khadija, in order to prevent her working as a journalist, and had violated her right to the presumption of innocence, when it arrested her on trumped up […]
Inter-American Court of Human Rights Protects Freedom of Expression in Venezuelan Criminal Defamation Case
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) delivered its judgment on the case of Tulio Álvarez v Venezuela. The judgment sets an important precedent on criminal prosecution of reporting in the public interest. Mr. Álvarez is a Venezuelan constitutional lawyer and university professor who was criminally convicted of “ongoing aggravated defamation” in respect of a column he […]
European Court of Human Rights Finds Hungary’s Refusal to Allow Journalist Access to Asylum Seekers’ Centre Interfered with Press Freedom
The European Court of Human Rights has held that a refusal to grant a journalist access to an asylum seeker reception centre in Hungary violated his right to freedom of expression. In its decision, Szurovecz v Hungary, the court emphasised that newsgathering, including first-hand observation, is an essential part of press freedom. Media Defence intervened in […]
Two Colombian Officials Sentenced to 30 and 40 Years for Crimes Committed Against Jineth Bedoya
On 6 May 2019, Alejandro Cárdenas Orozco and Jesús Emiro Pereira Rivera were sentenced to 30 and 40 years respectively for their role in the kidnapping, torture and sexual assault of Jineth Bedoya during her time reporting from La Modelo prison in Bogota, on 25 May 2000. Media Legal Defence Initiative (MLDI) considers this a […]
Free Speech Organisations Submit Amicus Brief in Inter-American Court of Human Rights Case on Criminal Defamation
Media Defence and seven other free speech organisations have today filed an amicus brief before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (the IACtHR) in the case of Tulio Álvarez v Venezuela. The case concerns the use of criminal legislation, including harsh and wide-ranging penalties, to stifle freedom of expression, and highlights the potential for abuse […]
Preliminary Opinion from Court of Justice of the European Union in Google v CNIL case about the right to be forgotten affirms the need to protect freedom of expression
On 10 January 2019, the Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered a landmark preliminary opinion (available below) in the Google v. CNIL case in respect of the scope of individuals’ right to request the removal, or “de-referencing”, of online information about them. Advocate General Maciej Szpunar opines that […]
European Court of Human Rights Finds Azerbaijan Violated the Rights of Investigative Journalist Khadija Ismayilova
On 10 January 2019, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered its judgment in the case of award-winning Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova. Ms Ismayilova, an independent investigative journalist internationally known for her pro-democracy stance, was the target of a systematic smear campaign comprising threats, intimidations and gross violations of her privacy designed to prevent her from […]
Third Party Intervention in ‘Foreign Agent Law’ Case Before the ECtHR
Media Defence has filed a third party intervention before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in the case of Levada Centre and others v. Russia. The case concerns a challenge to the requirement for Russian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that receive foreign funding and engage in ‘political activities’ to register as ‘foreign agents’ under the […]
Petition Filed at the UNWGAD on Behalf of Jailed Journalist and Activist Lê Đình Lượng
Media Legal Defence Initiative (MLDI, now Media Defence) has filed a Petition with the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) calling for the immediate release of Lê Đình Lượng, recently convicted and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in Viet Nam. Mr Lượng, 52, is a citizen journalist and an environmental and political activist. […]
Travel Bans: a Quiet Repression
Azeri journalist Kamran Mahmudov is taking his country to the European Court of Human Rights over unexplained travel restrictions which have prevented him from leaving Azerbaijan. Travel bans of this kind have been described as “a kind of quiet repression” by David Kaye, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right […]
Arbitrary Detention of Journalists in Vietnam
According to the most recent Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Index, Vietnam is ranked number 175 out of 180 countries in the world. Last month the award-winning Vietnamese blogger and human rights lawyer Nguyễn Văn Đài was released from prison in Vietnam and exiled to Germany. Meanwhile Media Defence filed a petition with the UN Working Group on […]
East African Court overturns Tanzania’s newspaper ban
The East African Court of Justice (EACJ) has handed down an important decision for freedom of expression in general, and press freedom in particular, in Tanzania. This case was brought following a ministerial order against a Tanzanian newspaper, banning it from publishing for three years. The newspaper, Mseto, challenged the order on the basis that it […]